Tale of a Changeling
by PinkSaphira
Summary: A changeling called Shadow does something daring, and it ends up changeing her forever. Now she is trying to find a place, but knows she never will with the changelings. So she leaves. But decides to try being a pony! This leads to a whole big mess. Will Shadow ever fit in anywhere? Rated T for violence and blood.
1. Prologue

Prologue

I walked to the gathering of changelings, wondering what could have possibly have made them this excited. Then I heard the whispers.

"It has so many ponies..."

"...so much love."

"...lots and lots of **food**!"

"...go there..."

"...should **attack!**"

"...hungry"

"...children **starving**." and other things like that. Then Queen Chrysalis, queen of the changelings, shouted, "Quiet!" and everyone stopped and looked at her.

"We will be attacking the town and I don't want a single pony to escape, understand?" she said. We all nodded.

"Alright then, we're attacking right now so try to keep up with me," she said, then leaped into the air and flew away. We all hurried to catch up with her. _Food_ I thought. It had been awhile since our bellies were full and it sounded like there would be **lots**. I couldn't wait.

When we arrived, I saw that there **were** lots of ponies **and** lots of love. We landed nearby and Queen Chrysalis whispered, "Change into ponies and split up. When you have them surrounded, change back and chase them to the town center. Leave someone at the edges to make sure no one escapes. Then search the houses. I have someone I want to meet so you can eat without me only if you save some for me."

This was an opportunity we had to take! We all changed into ponies and spread out. I walked around for a little, looking at all the shops, when I saw someone else change back, so I did too. Ponies screamed and ran away, but as we chased them. I noticed that no one had stayed behind so I decided I would. When I heard the general yell, "Bring them in!" I started going down the lane, searching houses as I passed them. Whenever I found a pony I chased it out and in the direction of the town center. But while I was looking I found one particular house that had a pony that wouldn't leave, even if I growled and snapped my teeth at her. She finally left when I said, "If you don't leave, I'll eat you." so she left, but before she did, she looked worriedly at a little table, then dashed off. I turned her in the direction of the town center, then went back to see what she was worried about. It was a little amber pony! She was very young so it was no wonder that the mother had been worried! She looked at me with amber eyes and I immediately decided to call her Amber. She didn't seem scared of me at all! I then realized that if I named her, I would grow attached to her, and she was a pony whose love I was supposed to eat! I then decided that she was too young so they wouldn't care if I left her. I knew that that wasn't true but I didn't want to take the poor little thing so I pretended I didn't find anything else in there.

I checked the rest of the houses then went to the center of town. There we ate our fill then waited for the queen. When she arrived she ate quite a bit but there was still tons of love to go around. We decided to stay here until all the food was gone or we were chased away. For once I actually hoped we would be chased away so Amber would have a mother, but my hopes were dashed when, after a few days, everypony was dull and lifeless. They had no love left so we decided to go home. As we flew, I made a plan to get Amber and take care of her. It would be hard but I would do it for her. I told my friends, "I want to give a last pony a beating for giving me quite a bit of trouble." They said ok and I flew back. I **did** actually beat one of them, though I felt bad for it, but I had to, just in case someone came back, though I didn't feel too bad because they were more like zombies now. After that I went to picked up Amber and found her whining and crawling towards the bedrooms. I felt sorry for her because she now had no mother. And it was all my fault . I said, "Hey little one." and she turned around. She made happy noises and crawled towards me. I went to her and nuzzled her, then went to find some food. When I found some for her to eat I grabbed it and returned to her. I then grabbed her as well and went out the door. For the first time I got to **really** see what became of the ponies whose love we ate. They really were like zombies. They walked around with crossed eyes and blank faces. They didn't do anything or have any personalities. They were just **there**. I felt sick and decided to get out of there. I flew away and made sure I was far enough behind the others. When I got close I landed and put Amber and the food down. I nudged them under a tree and said, "Stay here Amber. I will be back." She looked at me sadly until I gave her food and then she burbled happily and ate. I left her and went home. No one suspected anything. I kept going and taking care of her but changelings were starting to notice.

One day, while I was taking care of Amber, who was growing fast, another changeling jumped out and yelled, "Ha!" Both me and Amber fell back in surprise as more and more kept jumping out of the bushes. We stared in horror at them. And then Queen Chrysalis herself came out. She did not look happy, not happy at all.

"How dare you do this!" she snarled, then lifted Amber up with her green magic. Amber squirmed and I could see the fearful look on her face.

"Leave Amber alone!" I said, then realized who I was talking too. She smirked and said, "So you named her Amber? Perfect name. I think that to punish you for this trespass I shall give you both the ultimate punishment." She then turned and dipped Amber's tail in a puddle of what looked like green water but that I knew was called the Green Change. I watched in growing horror as first Amber's tail turned into it, then it traveled up her body until she was a changeling! That is why it is called the Green Change. It is abundant where we live. She still had her amber eyes, though they were now silted, and darker red hair, though it now had holes in it like Chrysalis', but now her body was the same color as Chrysalis' body. She also now had a crooked horn, legs with holes, and wings with holes.

"Amber!" I yelled, horrified that the queen would do this.

"She is now my heir which makes her a princess," Chrysalis hissed, then looked up and said, "This is your new princess, Princess Amber!" Everychangeling cheered when, moments before, she had been a pony!

She turned back to me and said, loud enough for everychangeling to hear, "From now on we will mock and jeer at you for what you have done. You shall be the lowest of the low. You shall have to do everything Amber and I want you to do." Then she whispered to me, "She will not remember you. I shall make sure of that." and left, still carrying Amber. I was mortified. Everything that could have possibly gone wrong did. Well, not until I heard my best friend say, "I can't believe Shadow would do that! She's more like a pony now than a changeling! From now on she is not my friend and her new name is Shadow the pony!" Everychangeling laughed at that and it made me feel just _awful_. My whole life had been ruined in the blink of an eye.


	2. Chapter 1: A Different Kind ofChangeling

Chapter 1

A Different Kind of Changeling

"Shadow! How is it being a pony?" asked my former best friend with a laugh. I had just been walking through town and changelings were jeering at me the whole way. It was like this everyday. And it had been a whole year since then! But I didn't regret it. Well, maybe a little, but only because Amber had been turned into a changeling. But now she was cruel. And she **had** forgotten me. Not only and she forgotten me but she was so mean too. **Especially** to me. Queen Chrysalis had taught Amber how to be just like her. Now Amber was almost grown up too. But she was bigger than most ponies. Queen Chrysalis had cast spells on her to help her grow bigger, and now she was as big as Princess Cadence! When she was full grown she would be as big as Princess Luna! I just ignored everychangeling and kept on walking.

"Shadow! Come here at once!" yelled Queen Chrysalis. _Great_ I thought _I almost missed her_. I turned around and walked to her. I stopped and looked at her. Of course, she had Amber with her.

"Hello Queen Chrysalis and Amber. What do you need?" I asked.

Amber hit my face with her hoof and said, "How **DARE** you call me Amber! It's **Princess** Amber to you!"

"Sorry, Princess Amber," I said, my face stinging.

She gave a snort of satisfaction and Queen Chrysalis said with a glare, "We need you to come help us with our bath again."

"Ok," I said, hating this job most of all. We flew to the woods and landed on the outskirts. They walked in and I followed them. We walked until we ran into a pool of Green Change. They walked in while I waited on the edge. They sighed and sank into it with only their heads sticking out of it.

Green Change will change ponies into changelings but for changelings it is our water. We don't like water. If our wings touch water they will slowly disintegrate. Though we don't drink the Green Change. The only thing we eat is love. We don't drink anything. That is why we are so desperate for love. But the Green Change is good for changelings. In fact, it's healthy for us. We need to take a bath every few days or we start getting weak and our wings start to shrivel up. If our wings get wet we just have to go into it and they will stop disintegrating. But there are flowers that like the Green Change too, so they grow right next to it. And those flowers are bad for us but good for ponies. If we stay close to the flowers for too long we get sick and will eventually die if we stay close to them. So we take short baths. But for ponies it makes them healthy. If they are sick they will be healed. And it makes their coats shiny. So I watched the flowers cautiously while they took a bath.

When they were done Amber yelled, "Shadow!" I hopped up and grabbed the towels then ran to them. They got out and I started to dry them off. When I was finally done they actually looked pretty. Which was very hard for them. That means that I have been doing this for long enough that I am very good at this. Pretty sad.

They looked at each other and Queen Chrysalis said, "Good enough, though I would prefer some more work to be done, but we can't stay here much longer. Let's go Amber." Then she walked away.

Amber kicked me as she passed and said, "Later pony." I waited until she left then winced. She was strong. I rubbed my side then got into the Green Change. It felt good, especially on the spot Amber just kicked and on my face. It stung at first them felt good. I sighed in relief. This felt great. I soaked for a little bit then got out. Unfortunately if I didn't leave soon the flowers would start to affect me. So I started walking back. Then I stopped. I had suddenly thought of something. Why not leave? I wouldn't have to put up with this anymore. But then my parents would be sad and I wouldn't be able to save Amber if I ever found a way. But I could take this no more. I would probably never find a cure and my parents wouldn't have to deal with having a humiliating daughter anymore. So I went deeper and deeper into the woods, trying to stay quiet and not leave a trail. When I thought I had gone far enough I started to run. I ran until I reached a meadow. The meadow led up to a mountain. That would be the perfect place to stay. I ran across the meadow and up towards the mountain. It would be too cold there for ponies to live there so no changelings or ponies would find me. I ran and ran until I couldn't anymore. Then I found a tree and slept under it. When I woke it was late morning. My legs ached but it felt good. I had been cooped up there for too long. Today I was free! I ran and ran and ran. At dusk I reached the peak. Everything was so pretty! I hadn't felt so good in such a long time. This really was perfect. I went about trying to find a place to stay. I saw some good spots but they just weren't the right ones. Then I reached a big tree. It was old and had a hollow in it. Perfect! It was like I was meant to find this place. I found some moss and leaves for my bed and put them in. I laid on them. It was so comfy. I grew drowsy a and soon fell asleep.

The next morning I awoke to the sound of birds. It was beautiful. I climbed out and they stopped. That's right, I was a changeling. I said to them, "It's alright, I won't hurt you. I love your song." They remained quiet. I was saddened by this. I loved their song but couldn't listen to it because of what I was. Then my stomach growled. I had to find some food. But where would I find some if there were no ponies around? I didn't want to eat their love anyways. So what was I going to eat? This was much more complicated than I had thought. I could still wait a few days. By the time I needed to eat I would have something figured out. But what? Maybe if I explored I would find something. I walked around and saw that there were actually quiet a few trees here. That was good. Good for cover. I walked quite a was looking for something that I could use as food. There was nothing. What was I going to do? This really bothered me. But I had to find some way. So I kept exploring. There wasn't much but snow, rocks, and trees. There were also a few birds. Maybe I could eat them. Other things did and survived. But there had to be something else. So I kept walking. I walked for what seemed like forever. I decided to go back if I didn't find anything over the next ridge. When I got to it I gasped. There was a pony town not too far from the mountain! That was my solution! What better place for a changeling to hide than as a pony in a small pony town! Plus I could eat pony food! It was perfect! I started going down but then stopped. I couldn't go in looking like this. I tried to think of a pony to turn into. I had to make one up. That was the only way I could blend in. So I thought long and hard. What was a pony look that I liked that would fit in? Then I had it. I turned into a black pony with purple eyes and red hair. But this wasn't enough. What was missing? My cutie mark. I though for a while when a sparkle caught my eye. I looked at it but it was only snow. But that sparkle had given me an idea. I made a cutie mark that was a red circle with a four pointed white star in the middle of it. That was perfect. But something was still missing. What? I looked at myself but didn't see anything. Then I thought of the different ponies. There were earth ponies, unicorns, pegasi, and alicorns. What did I want to be? A strong earth pony? Or a fast and high flying pegasi? Or maybe a magic using unicorn? How about a alicorn that had all of those? That sounded good. So I put a unicorn horn and pegasi wings on me. Luckily I had grown strong from all that hard work so I had strength like an earth pony. I now looked perfect. It was time to go make some friends! So I trotted down into the town. I noticed that everyone seemed unhappy. I walked up to a light orange pony with dark blue hair and said, "Why is everyone unhappy?"

She looked at me and gasped, then bowed and said, "What is a princess doing here?!"

I looked at her, then looked around and said, "Where is the princess?"

She looked me and said, "You aren't a princess?"

I looked at her in shock and said, "No."

"But you're an alicorn!" she said.

"Yes, I am. But that doesn't make me a princess," I said.

"But the only alicorns around are princesses," she said in confusion. Uh-oh, I had messed up already. I hadn't known only princesses were alicorns! How could I cover this? I thought for a second then came up with a grand idea.

"I come from a far away land where alicorns are common and we are ruled by an earth pony, unicorn, and pegasai that work together to run the kingdom," I told her.

She looked at me in amazement and said, "It must be wonderful place. But why did you come here?"

"I wanted to explore," I told her matter of factly.

"Can you take me to your kingdom?" she asked in wonder, "It sounds amazing!" Uh-oh, I had messed up again. What to do? Then I had it.

I said, "Unfortunately I got lost and have no idea how to get back."

She looked at me sadly and said, "Ok, I am sorry you have gotten lost. If you ever find your way back please take me with you."

I then said, "Sure, now can you tell me why everypony is unhappy?"

She nodded and looked at the other ponies in the street, then said, "This is Maresville, a town full of only mares. Close by is Coltsville, a town full of only colts. They used to be one town called Treesville, because this place has lots of trees. The town started fighting with each other over who should live where and do what. So they split up into two towns. But since they are still so close the ponies still fight with each other. This is making everypony very unhappy. Is that a good explanation?"

I nodded and said, "Thanks." Then I walked away.

"Wait!" she called, "What is your name?" My name? I had to give a pony name, not Shadow. So I though for a moment. Why were ponies named what they were? I thought of the princesses, Cadence, Luna, and Celestia. Celestia had something to do with the sun and her cutie mark was a sun. Luna meant moon and her cutie mark was a moon. Mi Amore Cadenza, aka Cadence, meant My(or I) love Cadence and her cutie mark was a heart. So your cutie mark was linked to your name, or at least it seemed like. It I looked at my cutie mark. What would be a good name for that? Then I got it. It was perfect! I looked at her and said, "My name is Starburst, what is yours?"

The light orange pony said, "Nice name. My name is Sweet Tune." I looked at her cutie mark to see it was a music note. I had guessed right. Names were linked to cutie marks! I then waved good bye and went onto the street. I looked around at all the shops. Where was an inn when you needed one? I finally found one, though it was a run down little place, but for now it would do. I went in and said, one room please. A brown unicorn with green hair looked at me and said, "2 bits."

Uh-oh, I didn't have any money! What was I going to do? I asked her, "I don't have any money right now but can I work it off?"

She looked at me suspiciously then said, "Fine, but you start first thing in the morning."

"Thank you," I said, "I will work hard to repay you."

"You better," I heard her mumble as I went up to a room. I climbed in bed and thought for a second. Tomorrow I would have to work for sleeping here but I would try really hard. I also had to get a job. And I especially had to make sure no one found out what I really was. Then my stomach growled. I would also have to get used to pony food. This was so exciting! I could hardly wait until morning. I tried to go to sleep but I was too excited thinking about tomorrow. Eventually I did drift off to sleep.


	3. Chapter 2: A Colt in Maresville

Chapter 2

A Colt in Maresville

I woke up to the sound of birds chirping. I got up and stretched, then looked out the window. I had never seen a more beautiful day. I opened the window to feel the small, cool breeze blow in. The birds kept chirping. I was surprised. They always stopped when they saw me. But right now I looked like a pony. I smiled. It was so good to not be feared. I happily trotted out of the room and down stairs. The brown unicorn saw me and said, "You're late. If you want to repay me you got to get up earlier."

"I'm so sorry, I had a long journey yesterday, so I was really tired," I said and hung my head. This was not a good start. I had to make a better impression.

"I don't care if you're a princess, if you are working for me you go by my rules," she retorted crossly.

"But I'm not a princess," I said. Here we go again. She looked at me in surprise and said, "You aren't? Then why are you an alicorn?"

"I come from a faraway land where alicorns are common and we are ruled by an earth pony, unicorn, and pegasi that work together to run the kingdom. I went exploring but I got lost and have no idea how to get back," I explained. She looked at me curiously and said, "Interesting, I had no idea there were other pony kingdoms, but it does make sense. Now get to work, you have to pay me off. I might even hire you on if you do well enough."

"Thank you, I won't let you down!" I said excitedly. This was perfect! I could get a job! I started walking away to get to work when she said, "Wait!"

"What?" I asked as I turned around.

"How are you going to clean if you don't know where the supplies are…, um, what is your name?" she said.

"Starburst," I replied, "So where are the supplies?"

The brown unicorn nodded and said, "Nice to meet you Starburst. I am Fir Tree. The supplies are back here. I'll get them, just wait there for a moment."

I got a look at her cutie mark just before she went into the back room and saw that it was a Fir Tree! So far I was right about names! I waited until she came back with a cart full of cleaning supplies. She brought the cart to me and said, "First, I want you to sweep. I always like to keep the floors clean. Second, I want you to mop any bad spots you found while you were sweeping. After that you have the rest of the day off until night falls. Then, when everypony is in bed, I need you to wash the tables and put the chairs back. I always wash the counter. You will get free meals if I actually hire you. Now, get to work."

She went back behind the bar and I decided to try some magic. I focused and tried picking up the broom. Dark purple magic surrounded it and it budged, then started to move towards me. My magic stopped and it suddenly thuncked to the floor. This was harder than it looked. I tried again and succeeded in bringing it up a little ways, but then it went back down.

"What's going on over there?" Fir Tree asked.

"N-nothing," I stuttered. I had to get it this time or she would suspect something. I tried really hard and it came really high,but then fell. I lunged and caught it just before it hit the ground. I sighed in relief. That was close. I gently set it down and tried again. This time it came up better. This was getting easier. I was able to get the broom to go into an upright position and slowly move it back and forth. I didn't want to lose control again. Besides, I had all day with nothing better to do. I started sweeping and dropped the broom several times but was luckily able to catch it most of those times. As I went along I got better and was able to go faster. Ponies started coming in though so I had to sweep certain spots several times. One of the times I was passing a table a pony asked, "What is a princess doing all the way out here?"

I stopped sweeping and looked at her, saying, "I am not a princess. I come from a faraway land where alicorns are common and we are ruled by an earth pony, unicorn, and pegasi that work together to run the kingdom. I went exploring but I got lost and have no idea how to get back,"

She stared at me in shock for a moment then shrugged her shoulders and said, "Whatever."

Then she went back to talking with her friends and eating. When the wave of ponies slowed down I was finally able to get the sweeping done. I put the broom away and sighed. That had been difficult. I rested for a moment, then grabbed the mop with my magic, which had gotten considerably better, and dipped it in the water bucket. I had found a few spots that needed mopping, but otherwise, I was done. I looked over at Fir Tree, who seemed to be taking a break as well.

She had been zipping between the tables and the bar, taking orders and delivering them. It was no wonder she had been willing to let me stay for work. She seemed to be the only worker here, so she had to do all the work! She finished a glass of water off then picked up a washcloth with light green magic and started polishing the counter. I turned to my own work and went to the spots I had found, then started mopping them. When I had finished it was around midday and I decided to do one more sweep before I headed out. I had just put away the mop, grabbed the broom, and started sweeping when a pony came through the door. Fir Tree and I both looked up. I was shocked. It was a colt! He looked around nervously and asked, "D-do you think I could g-get a room here?"

Fir Tree stopped staring at him and snarled, "You aren't welcome here, colt! Now get out before I zap you!"

"P-please, I'm willing to pay e-extra bits," he pleaded.

She scowled at him and said in a thunderous voice, "NO! Now get OUT!"

He jumped and ran out as fast as he could. I turned to Fir Tree and asked, "Why didn't you let him stay?"

"Because he's a no good colt, that's why!" she spat venomously. I was shocked by how much the people here hated colts. What about their husbands, did they hate them too? I had no idea, but I was no going to let him be mistreated just because he was a colt! I quickly finished sweeping and put the broom away. Fir Tree looked at the room and said, "Well done, you deserve a break. Oh, and you payed me off. Do you want to get a job here?"

"You bet I do!" I beamed. Yes! Now I had a job like a real pony!

"Alright then, you're hired! You did a fantastic job and I am happy to have you here!" she said.

"Now, about your pay. How about 3 bits a day? Just until business starts to get better. I have to admit, I haven't had very many customers lately, except for today of course," she said and blushed.

"It's alright, I understand," I replied.

"Good, then it's settled," she said as she got a look of relief on her face, "Now go have some fun."

I nodded and went out the door. I tried thinking of something to do, then remembered that I had wanted to do something, but what? I looked around, trying to jog my memory. That was when I saw a group of ponies yelling. This perked my interest and I ran over to see what was going on. I struggled through the crowd, trying to see what all the yelling was about. When I finally broke through I saw that it was the colt! I would have recognized his white coat and black hair anywhere. They were yelling at him and telling him to get lost. It looked like he was trying to, but he was trapped in the middle of them! This outraged me. It was not fair! He had done nothing wrong! I jumped over to him and saw him cringe. He thought I was attacking him! I whirled and faced the ponies. This had gone far enough.

"ENOUGH!" I roared at them. They stopped yelling and looked at me, puzzled.

"What has he ever done to you to deserve this?! This is wrong and unjust. Leave the poor colt alone and move along," I said, slowly calming down.

"He's a colt and he dares to show his face in Maresville!" an earth pony yelled from the crowd.

"But what if he doesn't know about the situation here? What if he is a visitor?" I asked them and looked around. They all looked ashamed and hung their heads. All except for one. It was the same pony that had spoken earlier. She stepped out of the crowd and snarled at me, which made her look ugly despite her light blue coat that shimmered in the sunlight and her bouncy dark purple hair.

"What do you know?" she said, "Since I've never seen you you probably don't know how things work around here either."

"I haven't been here for long but this has gone far enough! No other ponies would ever act like this! The princesses would be ashamed of you all!" I said and glared at the crowd. Now they really looked ashamed. Then a pony gasped and said, "She's a princess!"

Everypony suddenly seemed to realize that I was an alicorn and bowed to me. The light blue pony looked at me in shock.

"Wait!" I said, "I am not a princess! I come from a faraway land where alicorns are common and we are ruled by an earth pony, unicorn, and pegasi that work together to run the kingdom. I went exploring but I got lost and have no idea how to get back."

Everypony looked at me in shocked silence. Then the light blue pony smirked and said, "See? She has no idea what she is talking about!"

"I do too!" I retorted, "In my kingdom we never allowed this kind of behavior, ever!"

"But this isn't your kingdom, so you have no idea if things are different here!"

"I can tell that it's the same by how the ponies act!"

"I doubt that they act the same! For example, what is your name?!"

"I'm Starburst, what is your name?!"

"I'm Dazzle Gem! Wait, what? Your name is Starburst?"

I nodded. She looked at me grumpily and said, "I guess that that's a pretty normal name."

I smiled. I felt triumphant. Dazzle Gem snorted and said, "Well, you may have won today, but mark my words, you will not always win."

The she trotted off. I caught a look at her cutie mark as she left and saw it was a gem the had a sparkle on it. Once again, my name guessing had been right. I felt kinda bad though, using an imaginary place and way of life to win that argument. But deep down that had felt wrong, so I had done everything I could to help that poor colt. I turned to him as the crowd dispersed. He was looking up at me I wonder.

"What?" I asked him. He shook his head and said, "I can't believe you stood up to them."

"Why not? They were being mean to you for just being here. I couldn't just let them do that, could I?"

"No, but, you could have gotten hurt."

"So? I would have preferred that to you being hurt for nothing."

"Really?"

"Really."

"Wow, no pony has ever done something like this for me before."

"Well, now somepony has."

"Thank you, Starburst."

"No problem. Now, can I get a name?"

"What? Oh, of course. I'm White Light."

"Cool. What are you doing here?"

"Oh, um, I came here to see if I could learn martial arts to use in a play."

"Oh, you make plays?"

"I'm in some of them."

"Wow, that's cool. Hey, do you need a place to stay?"

"Yes."

"Then follow me."

I walked to the edge of Maresville, hoping this was the right direction. When we got to a giant fountain I stopped. The fountain was no longer working and the houses around it seemed deserted. I turned to White Light and said, "Keep going and you'll get to Coltsville."

He smiled at me and said, "Thanks."

Then he walked off. I saw his cutie mark too but this one confused me. It was a red tape that was curved with a star at each end. I shrugged. It must somehow make sense, even if I didn't know it. I looked around at the spooky houses and decided to get out of there.

Sorry YOUR MOTHER, but I had to change White Light a little because you didn't quite know the rules I have for this town. Hope you still enjoy and thanks for the suggestion!


End file.
